Schemes to validate and protect secure documents

ABSTRACT

Aspects described herein may provide detection of a feature of an authorization code image (ACI) incorporated onto a document, thereby allowing for validation of the document. According to some aspects, these and other benefits may be achieved by an instance of a variable protocol that may specify how to generate the ACI to have a particular feature as well as how to detect the particular feature of the ACI. A recipient of the document incorporating the ACI may detect the particular feature of the ACI. If the detected feature matches an expected feature, then the ACI and the document may be determined to be authentic.

FIELD OF USE

Aspects of the disclosure relate generally to validation of a document.More specifically, aspects of the disclosure may provide improvedtechniques for validating a document based on an authorization codeimage (ACI) incorporated onto the document at a time of issuance of thedocument.

BACKGROUND

Many documents, such as financial instruments or legal documents,require validation. Many conventional techniques for validating adocument require a specialized paper stock. The specialized paper stocktypical includes a pre-printed image (e.g., a watermark) indicating thata document prepared using the specialized paper stock is valid. Using astatic, pre-printed image for validation, however, often fails to detersophisticated forgers. For example, a forger may become aware of thepre-printed image on the specialized paper stock used to prepare acashier's check at a particular bank. The forger may copy theprinted-image and generate a fraudulent cashier's check to present forcashing or deposit. After the forgery is detected, large quantities ofhigh cost specialized paper stock is wasted as no longer useable, due tothe compromised pre-printed image used for validation.

Aspects described herein may address these and other problems, andgenerally improve the reliability of validating a document in a moreaccurate and reliable manner with reduced risk of forgery.

SUMMARY

The following presents a simplified summary of various aspects describedherein. This summary is not an extensive overview, and is not intendedto identify key or critical elements or to delineate the scope of theclaims. The following summary merely presents some concepts in asimplified form as an introductory prelude to the more detaileddescription provided below.

Aspects described herein may provide for validation of a document byvalidating an authorization code image (ACI) incorporated onto thedocument. Aspects described herein may provide for the ACI to begenerated and incorporated onto the document at a time of issuance ofthe document (e.g., contemporaneously as opposed to beingpredetermined). Aspects described herein may provide for a feature ofthe ACI to be varied based on any number of factors. Aspects describedherein may provide for the detection of the varied feature of the ACI bya recipient of a document incorporating the ACI. By varying features ofthe ACI, a risk of forgery is reduced.

More particularly, some aspects described herein may provide acomputer-implemented method for validating a document such as, forexample, a cashier's check. The method may include receiving a requestfor a cashier's check. An ACI for the cashier's check may be determinedbased on an instance of a variable protocol for generating ACIs. Thedetermined ACI may be printed on the cashier's check. Information basedon the variable protocol may be provided to a recipient of the cashier'scheck (e.g., a depositing bank). The provided information may be used todetect a variable property or feature of the ACI and/or to validate thecashier's check.

Corresponding apparatuses, systems, and computer-readable media are alsowithin the scope of the disclosure.

These features, along with many others, are discussed in greater detailbelow.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present disclosure is illustrated by way of example and not limitedin the accompanying figures in which like reference numerals indicatesimilar elements and in which:

FIG. 1 depicts an example of a computing device that may be used inimplementing one or more aspects of the disclosure in accordance withone or more illustrative aspects discussed herein;

FIG. 2 depicts an authorization code image (ACI) incorporated onto adocument according to one or more aspects of the disclosure;

FIG. 3 depicts a flow chart for a method of determining a validity of adocument based on an ACI incorporated onto the document; and

FIG. 4 depicts a system architecture for determining a validity of adocument in accordance with one or more aspects described herein; and

FIG. 5 depicts a flow chart for a method of generating an ACI for adocument; and

FIG. 6 depicts a flow chart for a method of using an ACI to validate adocument.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following description of the various embodiments, reference ismade to the accompanying drawings, which form a part hereof, and inwhich is shown by way of illustration various embodiments in whichaspects of the disclosure may be practiced. It is to be understood thatother embodiments may be utilized and structural and functionalmodifications may be made without departing from the scope of thepresent disclosure. Aspects of the disclosure are capable of otherembodiments and of being practiced or being carried out in various ways.Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology usedherein are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded aslimiting. Rather, the phrases and terms used herein are to be giventheir broadest interpretation and meaning. The use of “including” and“comprising” and variations thereof is meant to encompass the itemslisted thereafter and equivalents thereof as well as additional itemsand equivalents thereof.

By way of introduction, aspects discussed herein may relate to methodsand techniques for determining an authenticity of a document. A documentmay be requested by a requester. Based on the request, an issuer of thedocument may generate an authorization code image (ACI). The ACI may begenerated based on information related to the requester of the documentand/or information provided by the document. The ACI may be incorporatedonto the document. The issuer of the document may impart a property orfeature to the ACI that may be varied over time and/or may be unique tothe document. A recipient of the document may develop the ACI to detectthe imparted property or feature of the ACI. If the detected property orfeature matches an expected property or feature of the ACI, then the ACIand therefore the document may be considered to be valid. If thedetected property or feature does not match an expected property orfeature of the ACI, then the ACI and therefore the document may beconsidered to be invalid. The ACI may vary in any manner—for example, byshape size, design, placement, etc.—based on any input—for example, atime of day, a requestor, a location, a recipient, etc. The ACI may beadjusted and/or varied at any time along with a corresponding manner ortechnique for detecting a change or adjustment to any property orfeature of the ACI, thereby reducing opportunities to copy or forge theACI. Accordingly, documents incorporating the ACI may be determined tobe valid in a more secure and reliable manner.

Before discussing these concepts in greater detail, however, severalexamples of a computing device that may be used in implementing and/orotherwise providing various aspects of the disclosure will first bediscussed with respect to FIG. 1.

FIG. 1 illustrates one example of a computing device 101 that may beused to implement one or more illustrative aspects discussed herein. Forexample, computing device 101 may, in some embodiments, implement one ormore aspects of the disclosure by reading and/or executing instructionsand performing one or more actions based on the instructions. In someembodiments, computing device 101 may represent, be incorporated in,and/or include various devices such as a desktop computer, a computerserver, a mobile device (e.g., a laptop computer, a tablet computer, asmart phone, any other types of mobile computing devices, and the like),and/or any other type of data processing device.

Computing device 101 may, in some embodiments, operate in a standaloneenvironment. In others, computing device 101 may operate in a networkedenvironment. As shown in FIG. 1, various network nodes 101, 105, 107,and 109 may be interconnected via a network 103, such as the Internet.Other networks may also or alternatively be used, including privateintranets, corporate networks, local area networks (LANs), wirelessnetworks, personal networks (PAN), and the like. Network 103 is forillustration purposes and may be replaced with fewer or additionalcomputer networks. A LAN may have one or more of any known LANtopologies and may use one or more of a variety of different protocols,such as Ethernet. Devices 101, 105, 107, 109 and other devices (notshown) may be connected to one or more of the networks via twisted pairwires, coaxial cable, fiber optics, radio waves, or other communicationmedia.

As seen in FIG. 1, computing device 101 may include a processor 111, RAM113, ROM 115, network interface 117, input/output interfaces 119 (e.g.,keyboard, mouse, display, printer, etc.), and memory 121. Processor 111may include one or more computer processing units (CPUs), graphicalprocessing units (GPUs), and/or other processing units such as aprocessor adapted to perform computations associated with machinelearning. I/O 119 may include a variety of interface units and drivesfor reading, writing, displaying, and/or printing data or files. I/O 119may be coupled with a display such as display 120. Memory 121 may storesoftware for configuring computing device 101 into a special purposecomputing device in order to perform one or more of the variousfunctions discussed herein. Memory 121 may store operating systemsoftware 123 for controlling overall operation of computing device 101,control logic 125 for instructing computing device 101 to performaspects discussed herein, software 127 (e.g., machine learningsoftware), data 129 (e.g., training set), and other applications 131.Control logic 125 may be incorporated in and may be a part of software127. In other embodiments, computing device 101 may include two or moreof any and/or all of these components (e.g., two or more processors, twoor more memories, etc.) and/or other components and/or subsystems notillustrated here.

Devices 105, 107, 109 may have similar or different architecture asdescribed with respect to computing device 101. Those of skill in theart will appreciate that the functionality of computing device 101 (ordevice 105, 107, 109) as described herein may be spread across multipledata processing devices, for example, to distribute processing loadacross multiple computers, to segregate transactions based on geographiclocation, user access level, quality of service (QoS), etc. For example,devices 101, 105, 107, 109, and others may operate in concert to provideparallel computing features in support of the operation of control logic125 and/or software 127.

One or more aspects discussed herein may be embodied in computer-usableor readable data and/or computer-executable instructions, such as in oneor more program modules, executed by one or more computers or otherdevices as described herein. Generally, program modules includeroutines, programs, objects, components, data structures, etc. thatperform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data typeswhen executed by a processor in a computer or other device. The modulesmay be written in a source code programming language that issubsequently compiled for execution, or may be written in a scriptinglanguage such as (but not limited to) HTML or XML. The computerexecutable instructions may be stored on a computer readable medium suchas a hard disk, optical disk, removable storage media, solid statememory, RAM, etc. As will be appreciated by one of skill in the art, thefunctionality of the program modules may be combined or distributed asdesired in various embodiments. In addition, the functionality may beembodied in whole or in part in firmware or hardware equivalents such asintegrated circuits, field programmable gate arrays (FPGA), and thelike. Particular data structures may be used to more effectivelyimplement one or more aspects discussed herein, and such data structuresare contemplated within the scope of computer executable instructionsand computer-usable data described herein. Various aspects discussedherein may be embodied as a method, a computing device, a dataprocessing system, or a computer program product.

Having discussed several examples of computing devices which may be usedto implement some aspects as discussed further below, discussion willnow turn to an example arrangement for protecting and/or validating anauthenticity of a document.

FIG. 2 illustrates an example arrangement for protecting a document 202in accordance with one or more aspects described herein. The document202 may be any type of document such as, for example, a financialinstrument or a legal document. In various embodiments, the document 202may be a cashier's check or a certified check. The document 202 mayinclude an authorization code image (ACI) 204. The ACI 204 may be anytype of image. The ACI 204 may be, for example, any graphical image, anytextual image, or any combination thereof. The ACI 204 may be used forvalidating, verifying, and/or authenticating the document 202. Thedocument 202 may be considered to be a secure document when associatedwith the ACI 204.

In various embodiments, an issuer (e.g., an issuing bank of a payor of acashier's check) of the document 202 may generate and/or may place theACI 204 on the document 204. In various embodiments, the ACI 204 may beprinted on the document 202. In various embodiments, a recipient (e.g.,a cashing or depositing bank of a payee of the cashier's check) of thedocument 202 may use the ACI 204 to confirm an authenticity and/orvalidity of the document 202 as described herein. That is, the recipientof the document 202 may determine the document 202 is authentic and/orvalid by confirming the validity of the ACI 204.

In various embodiments, the ACI 204 may be a visible image. In variousembodiments, the ACI 204 may not be visible. In various embodiments, theACI 204 may not be visible initially (e.g., when placed onto thedocument 202) and may become visible based on a process for developingthe ACI 204 as described herein. In various embodiments, the ACI 204 maybe a two-dimensional matrix such as, for example, a barcode or a quickresponse (QR) code. In various embodiments, the ACI 204 may be awatermark. In various embodiments, the ACI 204 may be machine-readable.In general, the ACI 204 may have any shape, size, design, andarrangement.

In various embodiments, the ACI 204 may be placed on the document 202based on issuance of the document 202 as opposed to, for example,pre-printing or pre-placing the ACI 204 on the document 204. The ACI 204may be generated based on a variable protocol that may vary any propertyof the ACI 204. In various embodiments, the ACI 204 may be varied bydesign—for example, a shape and/or a size of the ACI 204. In variousembodiments, the ACI 204 may be varied by a placement on the document202. As an example, in a first instance of the variable protocol, theACI 204 may be placed or positioned in proximity to an upper rightcorner of the document 202 while in a second instance of the variableprotocol the ACI 204 may be placed or positioned in proximity to a lowerleft corner of the document 202. As an additional example, in a firstinstance of the variable protocol, the ACI 204 may be a firsttwo-dimensional matrix comprising first encoded information while in asecond instance of the variable protocol the ACI 204 may be a second,different two-dimensional matrix comprising second encoded information.

Other properties and/or features of the ACI 204 may also be varied. Invarious embodiments, an ink and/or a property of an ink used to printthe ACI 204 may be varied to adjust a property or feature of the ACI204. In various embodiments, a concentration of an additive of an inkfor printing the ACI 204 may be varied or adjusted. In variousembodiments, a concentration of microspheres of an ink for printing theACI 204 may be varied or adjusted. In various embodiments, a property ofan ink for printing the ACI 204 may be varied or adjusted to affect aresponse of the ink to a predetermined wavelength of light. In variousembodiments, a property of an ink for printing the ACI 204 may be variedor adjusted to affect a response of the ink to a change in temperature.In various embodiments, a property of an ink for printing the ACI 204may be varied or adjusted to affect a response of the ink to a humantouch. In various embodiments, any adjustment to a property of an inkused to print the ACI 204 may be detected by a recipient of the document202 to verify an authenticity of the ACI 204 (and therefore the document202) as described herein.

In various embodiments, the ACI 204 may comprise encoded information. Asan example, the ACI 204 may be generated based on encoding informationsuch as, for example, information related to the ACI 204 and/or thedocument 202. As a further example, the ACI 204 may be generated basedon a hash of information such as, for example, information related tothe ACI 204 and/or the document 202. In various embodiments, any encodedinformation of the ACI 204 may be decoded by a recipient of the document202 to verify an authenticity of the ACI 204 (and therefore the document202) as described herein.

One or more properties or features of the ACI 204 (e.g., a design of theACI 204 and/or a placement of the ACI 204) may be varied based on anyfactor. In various embodiments, a property or feature of the ACI 204 maybe varied based on a date of issuance of the document 202, a time (e.g.,a time of day) of issuance of the document 202, a customer associatedwith the document 202 (e.g., a payor of a cashier's check), a locationof issuance of the document 202, and/or a recipient of the document 202(e.g., a payee of a cashier's check). In various embodiments, a propertyor feature of the ACI 204 may be changed or adjusted at any time—forexample, daily, hourly, or weekly. In various embodiments, the same ACI204 may be placed on various documents or the ACI 204 may vary for eachdocument (e.g., unique to each document). In various embodiments, thesame ACI 204 may be used for a group of documents (e.g., all documentsprepared on a certain day or prepared by a particular issuer of thedocument).

In various embodiments, an issuer of the document 202 may generate theACI 204 and/or place the ACI 204 on the document 202 based on aninstance of the variable protocol that may be used to specify ordetermine one or more properties or features of the ACI 204. In variousembodiments, the ACI 204 may be “developed” (e.g., similar to how filmis developed) to reveal a property or feature (e.g., a detectableproperty or feature). As an example, the ACI 204 may not be visible wheninitially placed on the document. The issuer of the document 202 mayshare a technique for developing the ACI 204 with a recipient of thedocument 202 so that the recipient may verify an authenticity orvalidity of the document 202. For example, the issuer of the document202 may provide the recipient with a manner for converting the invisibleACI 24 into a visible ACI 204. The recipient may use such information todevelop the ACI 204 (e.g., to make the ACI 204 visible). The ACI 204,and therefore the document 202, may be determined to be authentic basedon a feature of the visible ACI 204 and/or the process used to revealthe ACI 204.

Various manners and/or techniques for developing the ACI 204 may be usedand/or provided including specifying how the ACI 204 (or an ink used toprint the ACI 204) may change in response to a change in temperature, inresponse to being touched, or in response to exposure to a predeterminedwavelength of light. In various embodiments, the recipient of thedocument 202 (e.g., an entity that may attempt to validate orauthenticate the document 202) may be aware of any protocol or techniquefor developing the ACI 204.

Overall, the ACI 204 may be evaluated for authenticity by the recipientof the document 202 in a number of manners based on the instance of thevariable protocol that specified generation of the ACI 204. In variousembodiments, the recipient may confirm an expected placement, design,shape, or size of the ACI 204. The recipient may also confirm anyexpected physical property or feature of the ACI 204 such as, forexample, the response of the ACI 204 to exposure to certain wavelengthsof light or the response of the ACI 204 to changes in temperature. Otherexpected features may be evaluated such as decoding of any encryptedinformation contained in the ACI 204 to verify the decoded informationmatches expected information.

In various embodiments, evaluating any property or feature of the ACI204 (e.g., converting an invisible ACI 204 to a visible ACI 204 ortesting a property of a ink used to print the ACI 204) may be considereddeveloping the ACI 204. In general, any property or feature of the ACI204 resulting from a particular instance of the variable protocol usedto generate the ACI 204 may be used to verify the authenticity of theACI 204, for example, by a recipient of the document 202 detecting theproperty or feature imparted to the ACI 204. The instance of thevariable protocol used to generate the ACI 204 may specify a manner fordetecting any imparted property or feature as well as how to impart theproperty or feature to the ACI 204.

In various embodiments, a developed ACI 204 and/or information relatedthereto may be provided to the issuer of the document 202 to verify acorrectness or authenticity of the developed ACI 204. As an example, theACI 204 may comprise an encoded two-dimensional matrix that is developedby decoding the encoded two-dimensional matrix. The decodedtwo-dimensional matrix may comprise an image or information that may beprovided to the issuer of the document 202. The issuer may be able toverify an accuracy or authenticity of the ACI 204 (and therefore thedocument 202) based on the provided image or information extracted fromthe developed ACI 204.

In various embodiments, if a property or feature of the ACI 204 (e.g.,when developed) differs from an expected property or feature, then theACI 204 (and therefore the document 202) may be determined to be invalidand/or inauthentic. In various embodiments, a recipient of the documentmay perform a comparison of an expected property or feature of the ACI204 to an actual property or feature of the ACI 204. In variousembodiment, the issuer of the document 202 may perform such comparison.In various embodiments, the issuer of the document 202 may share atechnique for developing the ACI 204 and/or may inform the recipient ofthe document 202 an expected property or feature of the developed ACI204.

As an example, the ACI 204 may be printed using an ink that includesmicrospheres. A concentration of the microspheres may be varied togenerate the ACI 204. The microspheres may include an additive (e.g., amaterial or chemical contained within the microspheres). The additivemay cause the ink used to print the ACI to exhibit a firstcharacteristic in a first state—for example, when exposed to ambientlight. The additive may cause the ink used to print the ACI to exhibit asecond characteristic in a second state—for example, when exposed to alight of a particular wavelength (e.g., predetermined wavelength). Invarious embodiments, the first and second characteristics may be variedbased on the microspheres included in the ink. In various embodiments,the first and second characteristics may be adjusted or changed overtime and/or may be determined at a time of issuing the document 202 thatis to include the ACI 204. In this manner, the ACI 204 may be changed asdesired to reduce a risk of duplication.

In various embodiments, the first characteristic may be that the ACI 204is not visible in typical lighting situations (e.g., the ACI may be alatent image). The second characteristic may be that the ACI 204 becomesvisible when exposed to the light of the predetermined wavelength. Thelight of the predetermined wavelength may be considered to be a frankinglight. Printing the ACI 204 using the ink that includes the microspheresmay be considered to be a form of franking the document 202, forexample, by indicating the document is authentic. In variousembodiments, the ACI 204 may convert from an initial textual display of“VOID” to a textual display of “VALID” by exposing the ACI 204 to thefranking light. The microspheres (e.g., a concentration and includedcomponents thereof) may be adjusted to invoke a particular response toexposure to the franking light. The franking light (e.g., thepredetermined wavelength of light provided by the franking light) canalso be adjusted as part of the ACI protocol described herein. Forexample, a light of a first predetermined wavelength may invoke a firstresponse by the ACI 204 while a light of a second predeterminedwavelength may invoke a second response by the ACI 204. An issuer of theACI 204 may specify which wavelength of light to expose to the ACI 204as part of the development of the ACI 204.

In various embodiments, the ACI 204 may be used in the context ofverifying an authenticity of a cashier's check. As an example, a requestmay be received from an individual or a customer for a cashier's check.The individual or customer may be a payor of the requested cashier'scheck. A bank may receive the request for the cashier's check. Thecustomer may have an account with the bank that received the request.The request for cashier's check may include information regarding anamount of the cashier's check and/or a payee of the cashier's check.

The bank that receives the request for the cashier's check may determinethe ACI 204. The ACI 204 may be generated based on information regardingthe customer and/or information associated with the cashier's check(e.g., information associated with a location of the bank, a time ofissuance, a date of issuance, a designated payee, etc.). The bank mayalso determine a placement of the ACI 204 on the cashier's check.

After determining the ACI 204 (e.g., a design, shape, size, encoding,etc.) and the placement of the ACI 204, the bank may determine aproperty to be adjusted of a ink for printing the ACI 204. The propertyof the ink may be varied in a number of ways including, for example,adjusting a concentration of an additive of the ink, adjusting aconcentration of microspheres in the ink, adjusting a response of theink to exposure to a predetermined wavelength of light, adjusting aresponse of the ink to a change in ambient temperature, or adjusting aresponse of the ink to being touched (e.g., by a finger of a person).After adjusting the property of the ink, the ink may be used to printthe ACI 204 on the cashier's check.

The determination of the ACI 204—including determining a placement ofthe ACI 204 on the cashier's check, determining design of the ACI 204,and/or a variation in a property of the ink used to print the ACI204—may be based on a particular instance of the variable protocol usedfor specifying such property and/or features of the ACI 204. Eachinstance of the variable protocol may vary based on any number offactors (e.g., inputs) as described herein—such as information relatedto the cashier's check, the customer, location, time, etc.—to result inan ACI 204 that varies temporally (e.g., hourly, daily, or over anyperiod of time).

A recipient of the cashier's check (e.g., a payee designated on thecashier's check) may provide the cashier's check to a bank to cash ordeposit the check. The payee's bank may vary from the payor's bank. Thepayee's bank may validate the ACI 204. As an example, the payee bank maydetermine that the ACI 204 is expected to exhibit a certain property orcharacteristic when exposed to a predetermined wavelength of light. Theexpected property may be a change in color or may be a revealing of aparticular previously imperceptible design within the ACI 204. Thepredetermined wavelength may be any wavelength of light or range ofwavelengths.

As an example, a particular wavelength of ultraviolet light may beapplied to the ACI 204. If the ink of the ACI 204 does not change colorto a predetermined color in response to exposure to the predeterminedwavelength of light, for example, the ACI 204 may be declared to beinvalid. In various embodiments, the ACI 204 may show “VOID” untilproperly developed. The resulting ACI 204 (e.g., the developed ACI 204and/or a property or feature thereof) may be compared to the expectedACI 204 to verify authenticity. The payee bank may perform suchcomparison or the payor bank may perform such comparison. Under eitherscenario, a determination is made if an expected property of the inkand/or a response of the ink matches an expected property or response ofthe ink, based on the manner of authentication (e.g., manner ofdeveloping the ACI 204).

In general, any property or feature of the ACI 204 as described hereinmay be varied, changed, or adjusted across one or more documentsassociated with the ACI 204 (e.g., the document 204). The expectedproperty or feature of the ACI 204 may be provided to an entityinterested in verifying the ACI 204. In various embodiments, a mannerfor developing the ACI 204 may be shared with the entity. In variousembodiments, the manner for developing the ACI 204 may be known to theentity. In various embodiments, the developed ACI 204 may be provided tothe entity that generated the ACI 204 for review and authentication(e.g., for comparison to an expected developed ACI 204). In variousembodiments, the entity performing the development of the ACI 204 may beaware of expected characteristics of the developed ACI 204 and mayperform any comparison to an actual developed ACI 204. A validated ACI204 may indicate that an associated document to which it is affixed(e.g., the document 202) is valid and/or otherwise trustworthy. An ACI204 that is determined to be invalid may indicate that the document 202is inauthentic and/or fraudulent.

Determining the ACI 204 based on a variable protocol that may use anynumber of inputs or factors to vary the ACI 204 (e.g., any property orfeature related to the ACI 204) enables the ACI 204 to be varied at anytime and/or varied based on a variety of factors. Temporal variation ofthe ACI 204 mitigates fraudulent ACIs by staying out ahead of fraudulentACIs. That is, a first ACI may be generated on a first day and a second,different ACI may be generated on a second, sequential day. Because theACIs vary, a copied or fraudulent version of the first ACI may be easierto detect—for example, as an “old” version of the ACI. Overall, the ACI204 may be used by a recipient of the document 202 to validate and/or toauthenticate the document 202. The recipient may perform operations

FIG. 3 illustrates an example method 300 for determining a validity of adocument in accordance with one or more aspects described herein. Method300 may be implemented with the example document 202 and the example ACI204 depicted in FIG. 2. Method 300 may be implemented by any suitablecomputing system, as described herein. For example, method 300 may beimplemented in any suitable computing environment by a computing deviceand/or combination of computing devices, such as computing devices 101,105, 107, and 109 of FIG. 1. Method 300 may be implemented in suitableprogram instructions, such as in software 127, and may operate on data,such as data 129. Method 300 is described in the context of validating acashier's check but is not so limited. Instead, method 300 is applicableto any type of document or instrument.

At 302, a customer may request a cashier's check. The customer mayrequest the cashier's check from a bank or other financial institution.The customer may have an account with the bank. The bank that receivesthe request for the cashier's check may be considered to be the payor'sbank. The customer may provide information associated with the requestedcashier's check such as, for example, an amount of the cashier's checkor a payee of the cashier's check. The bank may receive the request forthe cashier's check at step 302.

At 304, the bank may determine an ACI for the cashier's check. The bankmay determine the ACI by generating (e.g., electronically) the ACI. TheACI may be an image stored electronically in one or more computingdevices. The bank may determine the ACI by determining a shape, a size,a design, a placement, a property, and/or a feature of the ACI,including any property or feature of an ink to be used to print the ACI.The bank may determine the ACI based on a variety of inputs includingdata or information related to the customer or related to the requestedcashier's check. The determined ACI may be stored electronically.

An instance of a variable protocol may be used to determine the ACI withone or more inputs determining the instance of the variable protocol.The instance of the variable protocol may determine any aspect of theACI including how to develop the ACI. As an example, the instance of thevariable protocol may specify how to adjust a property or characteristicof an ink to be used to print the ACI. The instance of the protocol mayspecify a particular wavelength of light to expose the ACI to in orderto detect a property or characteristic of the ACI. The instance of thevariable protocol may specify an expected property or feature of the ACI(or the ink) to be used for comparison when developing the ACI.

An example of a method for generating the ACI is further discussed belowwith respect to FIG. 5. An example of a method for developing and/orvalidating a document with an ACI is further discussed below withrespect to FIG. 6.

At 306, the cashier's check may be ready to be printed. The bank mayretrieve the ACI from storage (e.g., a memory or other electronicstorage device) and/or a computing device (e.g., a server).

At 308, a printer may be used to print the ACI on the cashier's check.The print may use an ink that has had one or more properties or featuresadjusted in accordance with the instance of the variable protocol. Forexample, the printer may use an ink that includes a first concentrationof an additive that causes the print ACI to respond in a first mannerwhen exposed to light of a first wavelength. This response may beconsidered to be an expected property or feature of the ACI. The printermay incorporate the ACI onto the cashier's check at a position orplacement determined at step 304.

At 310, the cashier's check that includes the printed ACI may beprovided to the customer. Accordingly, the customer may receive atangible copy of a document incorporating the ACI.

At 312, the customer may provide the cashier's check that includes theprinted ACI to a payee.

At 314, the payee may request to deposit the cashier's check. The payeemay provide the cashier's check to a bank other than the bank thatissued the cashier's check. The bank that receives the cashier's checkfrom the payee may be considered to be the payee's bank. The payee mayhave an account with the bank that receives the cashier's check from thepayee.

At 316, the payee's bank may request information regarding the ACI fromthe payor's bank. Any information regarding the ACI may be requested. Invarious embodiments, information related to the instance of the variableprotocol used by the payor's bank to determine the ACI may be requestedand provided. In various embodiments, the instance of the variableprotocol used by the payor's bank to determine the ACI may be requestedand provided.

In various embodiments, information related to developing the ACI may berequested and shared. The information related to developing the ACI maybe considered to be a development protocol or an ACI developmentprotocol. The ACI development protocol may include any informationrelated to determining or detecting a property, feature, orcharacteristic of the ACI. As an example, the ACI development protocolmay indicate a particular wavelength of light to expose to the ACI. Asanother example, the ACI development protocol may indicate a manner fordecoding encoded information contained in the ACI.

In various embodiments, at step 316, information regarding an expectedproperty or feature of the ACI may be requested and shared. As anexample, information regarding a response of the ACI to exposure to theparticular wavelength of light may be provided. In various embodiments,the payee's bank may be aware of the ACI development protocol and maynot request such information at step 316.

At step 318, the payee's bank may develop the ACI. The payee's bank maydevelop the ACI based on the ACI development protocol. As describedherein, the payee's bank may be aware of the ACI development protocol ormay not be aware of the ACI development protocol and may request the ACIdevelopment protocol from the payor's bank. Development of the ACI mayinclude any process, procedure, or activity to determine or detect anyproperty, feature, or characteristic of the ACI printed on the cashier'scheck including any property, feature, or characteristic of the ink usedto print the ACI. As an example, the ACI may be developed by exposingthe ACI to light of a particular wavelength and detecting the responseof the ACI. The response of the ACI may be any response such asrevealing a previously invisible image and/or changing a color.

At 320, the developed ACI may be verified for correctness. In variousembodiments, a detected property or feature of the ACI determined atstep 318 may be compared to an expected property or feature of the ACI.In various embodiments, the comparison may be performed by the payor'sbank, for example, by having the payee's bank provide the detectedproperty or feature of the developed ACI to the payor's bank. In variousembodiments, the comparison may be made by the payee's bank, forexample, by having the payor's bank provide any expected property orfeature of the ACI to the payee's bank. In various embodiments, thecomparison may be a visual comparison (e.g., of a developed ACI to anexpected developed ACI). In various embodiments, the ACI may be machinereadable and the developed ACI may be compared to an expected ACI by acomputing device. For example, the ACI may be a QR code and a computingdevice may compare the expected QR code to the actual QR code afterdevelopment of the ACI.

At 322, if the developed ACI does not matched the expected ACI (e.g., aproperty or feature of the developed ACI does not match an expectedproperty or feature of the ACI), then the document associated with theACI may be determined to be inauthentic and/or invalid. An investigationmay be triggered based on the determination that the ACI is inauthenticor not valid.

At 324, if the developed ACI does match the expected ACI (e.g., aproperty or feature of the developed ACI does match an expected propertyor feature of the ACI), then the document associated with the ACI may bedetermined to be authentic and/or valid. The payee's bank may thenproceed with processing the check. As an example, the payee's bank maycomplete a requested deposit of the cashier's check.

FIG. 4 illustrates a system architecture 400 for determining a validityof a document in accordance with one or more aspects described herein.The system architecture 400 may be used to implement the method 300 or aportion thereof. The system architecture 400 may be used to generate oneor more of the document 200 and the ACI 204 depicted in FIG. 2. Thesystem architecture 400 may include any computing device and/orcombination of computing devices, such as computing devices 101, 105,107, and 109 of FIG. 1. The system architecture 400 is described in thecontext of entities associated with issuance and processing a cashier'scheck (e.g., an issuing bank and a cashing bank) but is not so limited.Instead, the system architecture 400 is applicable to any type of entityor actor and any type of document or instrument.

As shown in FIG. 4, the system architecture 400 may include a check(e.g., a cashier's check) issuing bank 402, a check payor 404, aprocessing bank (e.g., a check cashing or check depositing bank) 406,and a check payee 408. The system architecture 400 may further includean ACI orchestration system 410.

The check payor 404 may request a cashier's check from the issuing bank402. To generate the cashier's check, the issuing bank 402 may receiveinformation related to a protocol for generating an ACI from the ACIorchestration system 410. The ACI orchestration system 410 may providethe issuing bank 402 with information for generating the ACI including,for example, information related to an instance of a variable protocolfor generating the ACI as described herein.

The issuing bank 402 may create the cashier's check and may include anACI on the cashier's check in accordance with and/or based oninformation received from the ACI orchestration system 410. The issuingbank 402 may provide the cashier's check to the check payor 404.

The check payor 404 may provide the cashier's check to the check payee408. The check payor 404 may provide the cashier's check to the checkpayee 408 as part of a transaction. The check payee 408 may provide thecashier's check to the processing bank 406. The check payee 408 mayprovide the cashier's check to the processing bank 406, for example, torequest cashing or deposit of the cashier's check.

The processing bank 406 may attempt to validate the cashier's check byvalidating the ACI included on the cashier's check. The processing bank406 may receive information from the ACI orchestration system 410 tovalidate the ACI. The processing bank 406 may receive informationregarding a protocol for developing the ACI as described herein. Theprocessing bank may receive information regarding an expected propertyor feature of the ACI and/or the developed ACI.

Any combination of the processing bank 406, the ACI orchestration system410, and the issuing bank 402 may be used to develop the ACI, comparethe ACI and/or the developed ACI to an expectation of the ACI and/or thedeveloped ACI, and determine if the ACI is valid or invalid. The resultsof any of these determinations may be communicated to one or more of theprocessing bank 406, the ACI orchestration system 410, and the issuingbank 402.

When it is determined that the ACI on the cashier's check is valid, itmay be determined that the cashier's check is valid. Accordingly, theprocessing bank 406 may allow the payee 408 to deposit the cashier'scheck. Funds from the issuing bank 402 may then be transferred to theprocessing bank 406.

FIG. 5 illustrates an example method 500 for generating an ACI inaccordance with one or more aspects described herein. Method 500 may beimplemented with the example document 202 and the example ACI 204depicted in FIG. 2. Method 500 may be implemented by any suitablecomputing system, as described herein. For example, method 500 may beimplemented in any suitable computing environment by a computing deviceand/or combination of computing devices, such as computing devices 101,105, 107, and 109 of FIG. 1. Method 500 may be implemented in suitableprogram instructions, such as in software 127, and may operate on data,such as data 129. Method 500 may be implemented within the systemarchitecture 400. Method 500 is described in the context of generatingan ACI for a cashier's check but is not so limited. Instead, method 500is applicable to any type of document or instrument. Method 500 may bepart of the method 300 described above.

At step 502, a request from a customer for a cashier's check may bereceived. The request may be received electronically.

At step 504, an ACI for the cashier's check may be determined. The ACImay comprise an image for validating the cashier's check. The ACI may begenerated based on the customer and/or information associated with thecashier's check.

At step 506, a placement of the ACI on the cashier's check may bedetermined. The ACI may be placed anywhere on the cashier's check.

At step 508, an adjustment to a property of an ink for printing the ACImay be determined and/or an adjustment to the property of the ink forprinting the ACI may be determined. The adjustment to the property ofthe ink may be any of the adjustments discussed herein in relation to aproperty of the ink.

At step 510, the ACI may be printed on the cashier's check. The ACI maybe printed on the cashier's check using the ink determined in step 508and/or based on the ACI placement determined at step 506. The cashier'scheck may be provided to the customer.

FIG. 6 illustrates an example method 600 for using an ACI to validate adocument in accordance with one or more aspects described herein. Method600 may be implemented with the example document 202 and the example ACI204 depicted in FIG. 2. Method 600 may be implemented by any suitablecomputing system, as described herein. For example, method 600 may beimplemented in any suitable computing environment by a computing deviceand/or combination of computing devices, such as computing devices 101,105, 107, and 109 of FIG. 1. Method 600 may be implemented in suitableprogram instructions, such as in software 127, and may operate on data,such as data 129. Method 600 may be implemented within the systemarchitecture 400. Method 600 is described in the context of a cashier'scheck but is not so limited. Instead, method 600 is applicable to anytype of document or instrument. Method 600 may be part of the method 300described above.

At step 602, a request for a cashier's check may be received. Therequest may be received electronically.

At step 604, an ACI for the cashier's check may be determined. The ACImay be determined based on an instance of a variable protocol forgenerating ACIs as described herein. The ACI may comprise an image forvalidating the cashier's check.

At step 606, the ACI may be printed on the cashier's check. The ACI mayprinted on any portion of the cashier's check.

At step 608, information based on the instance of the variable protocolmay be sent to a third party. The information sent to the third partymay be used to develop the ACI on the cashier's check as describedherein. The information sent to the third part may also be used or mayalternatively be used to validate the cashier's check.

Some aspects described herein may provide benefits for determining anauthenticity of a document in a more reliable and accurate manner Incontrast to prior techniques that rely on a predetermined and/or astatic image incorporated onto a document as an indicator of a validityof the document, aspects described herein provide for the ACI to beprovided with issuance of the document. Accordingly, the ACI—forexample, any property, feature, or characteristic of the ACI—may beadjusted and varied at any time based on a variety of inputs or factors,thereby reducing opportunities for copying. Further, techniques fordetecting any adjusted feature of the ACI may be secured, therebypreventing an interceptor from determining how to validate the ACI andtherefore the document. Providing the ACI at a time of issuance of thedocument to be secured obviates any need for expensive pre-printed paperstocks that incorporate static, predetermined means for validating adocument.

Although the subject matter has been described in language specific tostructural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understoodthat the subject matter defined in the appended claims is notnecessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above.Rather, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed asexample forms of implementing the claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A computer-implemented method comprising:receiving a request from a customer for a cashier's check; determiningan authorization code image (ACI) for the cashier's check, wherein theACI comprises an image for validating the cashier's check, the ACIgenerated based on the customer and information associated with thecashier's check; determining a size, a shape, and a placement of the ACIon the cashier's check; adjusting a property of an ink for printing theACI; printing, based on the determined size and the determined shape,the ACI on the cashier's check with the ink and on the determinedplacement; and providing an indication of the adjusted property of theink to a validator of the cashier's check, wherein the determined size,the determined shape, and the determined placement of the ACI are basedon a date and a time of day the request from the customer for thecashier's check is received and a recipient of the cashier's check. 2.The method of claim 1, wherein adjusting the property of the inkcomprises adjusting a concentration of an additive of the ink.
 3. Themethod of claim 1, wherein adjusting the property of the ink comprisesmaking an adjustment to the ink for affecting a response of the ink to apredetermined wavelength of light.
 4. The method of claim 1, whereinadjusting the property of the ink comprises making an adjustment to theink for affecting a response of the ink to a change in temperature. 5.The method of claim 1, wherein adjusting the property of the inkcomprises making an adjustment to the ink for affecting a response ofthe ink to a human touch.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein determiningthe ACI is further based on a date, a time, or both a date and a time.7. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the placement of the ACIon the cashier's check is based on a location of issuance of thecashier's check.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein the image forvalidating the cashier's check comprises a quick response (QR) code. 9.The method of claim 1, wherein the ACI is unique to the cashier's check.10. A computer-implemented method comprising: receiving a request for acashier's check; determining an authorization code image (ACI) for thecashier's check based on an instance of a variable protocol forgenerating ACIs, wherein the ACI comprises an image for validating thecashier's check; determining, based on the instance of the variableprotocol for generating ACIs, a size, a shape, and a placement of theACI on the cashier's check; printing, based on the determined size andthe determined shape, the ACI on the cashier's check on the determinedplacement; and sending information based on the instance of the variableprotocol, wherein the information can be used by a third party to (a)develop the ACI on the cashier's check, (b) validate the cashier'scheck, or both (a) and (b), wherein the determined size, the determinedshape, and the determined placement of the ACI are based on a date and atime of day the request from the customer for the cashier's check isreceived and a recipient of the cashier's check.
 11. The method of claim10, wherein the ACI is machine readable.
 12. The method of claim 10,wherein the information based on the instance of the variable protocolincludes the instance of the variable protocol.
 13. The method of claim10, wherein the instance of the variable protocol for the ACI includes atemperature sensitivity characteristic of an ink used for printing theACI.
 14. The method of claim 10, wherein the instance of the variableprotocol for the ACI includes a light sensitivity characteristic of anink used for printing the ACI.
 15. The method of claim 10, wherein theinstance of the variable protocol for the ACI includes a concentrationof an additive of an ink used for printing the ACI.
 16. The method ofclaim 10, wherein the instance of the variable protocol for the ACI isdetermined based on a date, a time, or both the date and the time. 17.The method of claim 10, wherein the instance of the variable protocolfor the ACI is determined based on the customer, a location, or both thecustomer and the location.
 18. One or more non-transitory media storinginstructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause theone or more processors to perform steps comprising: receiving a requestfrom a customer for a cashier's check; determining a date the requestwas received; determining a time of day the request was received;determining a recipient of the cashier's check; determining a locationassociated with the request; determining information associated with thecustomer; determining an authorization code image (ACI) for thecashier's check and a size, a shape, and a placement of the ACI on thecashier's check, based on the determined date, the determined time ofday, the determined recipient, the determined location, and thedetermined information associated with the customer, wherein the ACIcomprises an image for validating the cashier's check; printing, basedon the determined size and the determined shape, the ACI on thecashier's check on the determined placement; and providing informationregarding the ACI to a validator of the cashier's check.